Girard-Perregaux 1966 Small Second

The Swiss watchmaker will soon add a new version of the Girard-Perregaux 1966 Small Second (ref. 49534-52-711-BK6A) automatic watch to its generous GP 1966 Collection of dress watches. Coming in a modestly sized round body, the watch features that easily recognizable, vintage-style dial layout with italicized, Breguet-style Arabic numerals, blued hands and easy to read railway-type minute and second tracks that make the piece look like those luxurious pocket watches from the 1920s.

Available soon in rose gold and white gold cases, the new watch will probably replace the current GP Small Second in Palladium model, which was offered as a limited edition with the reference number 49526-79-131-BK6A.

As you can see on the pictures, the model is offered in a classic round rose case with a pretty average size of 40 mm.

The watch’s white dial is made using “Grand Feu” enameling technique, which is very rare these days since it demands high-skilled workers to do the job, cannot be automated and, for obvious reasons, produces a greater share of duds that have to be scrapped thus making each dial a lot more expensive. However, when the dial is done right, you get yourself a watch with a truly remarkable face thanks to its unique texture and that signature matte ‘glow’ that no kind of modern powder-coating technique can match.

Since the watch comes without the date display that had to be visually counter-weighted on previous iterations of the watch, the small seconds display has been moved counter-clockwise from 9 o’clock to 6 o’clock position to serve as a sort of ‘anchor’ for the whole display. With its finely printed ‘railway’ ring that mimics that of the main chapter ring (save, of course, for the numerals that, while staying Arabic, feature different typeface for better readability) and extremely delicate pointer crafted from blued steel (not sure whether it’s a heat-treated like the larger hands or just painted blue,) the sub-dial doesn’t look too heavy and actually contributes to the overall feeling of lightness and even relaxation that only a vintage-styling timekeeper can combine in the same body.

According to the Swiss brand’s PR department, the new version of the watch will be powered by the GP03300-50 automatic caliber, which is based on the same GP Calibre 3300 base movement. The movement is known for its use of 0.3 mm ceramic ball bearings made of zirconium oxide which make the automatic winding more efficient and significantly increase movement’s life span.